“Gonna”
Blake Shelton
Written by Luke Laird and Craig Wiseman
“Gonna” is a mix of the old and the more recent Blake Shelton. It has shades of his current music trends, but also calls back to his more relaxed country beginnings.
First, it seems that it couldn’t be a Blake Shelton song these days if there wasn’t at least a little EDM influence thrown in. Fortunately, it only starts there and then moves away fairly quickly, which allows the song to become a pleasant pop country ear worm.
Second, lyrics such as “diggin’ on hittin’ on you tonight”, “pump it on the boulevard,” and “kick it in the country” are ripped from urban slang, but due to Shelton’s good-natured delivery, the song isn’t weighed down by them.
To offset the slang, “Gonna” notably goes a little beyond the typical current theme of “a guy and his one night arm candy,” and proposes an actual date and a proclamation of commitment: “I ain’t just flirtin’/ I’m certain/ I’m working on a long term plan.”
Shelton’s new single is not perfect, but it is a refreshing variation of the music that he’s been making in the past few years. It’s lighthearted and will play well with car singers and live audiences thanks to its easygoing, sing along, call and answer chorus.
What’s more, it ultimately sounds more like a pop country song than a pop rock or pop R&B song, which is almost all that we can ask for from a current single targeted at radio and the charts.
Grade: B
Not sure where else to ask this, but with Blake and Miranda splitting and now Reba and her husband splitting, will we see a big difference in industry awards results?